As we steadily head towards the business end of the FIBA Women’s World Cup, the top-ranked teams have once again justified their place as the world’s best. In the quarterfinals, No. 2-ranked France, one of the favorites to win it all, convincingly overcame No. 4-ranked China thanks to Gabby Williams and company.

Meanwhile, No. 5-ranked Belgium was shocked by No. 11-ranked Germany, as head coach Olaf Lange’s side produced one of their best performances in recent memory.

With all four semifinal spots officially booked, we take a look at how France and Germany set their semifinal date together on Saturday, and more.

France reaches the World Cup semifinals for the first time

France showed the world why FIBA has ranked them first in its latest power rankings, as throughout the group stage games, head coach Jean-Aimé Toupane’s side had been nothing but dominant. That trend followed in their quarterfinal clash as France beat China 90-61 to reach the semifinals.

France’s relentless attack was led by Marine Johannès and Janelle Salaün, each scoring 15 points. Salaün had a slight injury scare as she had an ice pack bound to her right knee, but the French head coach told The Associated Press it was just a precaution.

Golden State Valkyries star Gabby Williams had the most time on the court and made up for it with 14 points, seven defensive rebounds, and two assists in 24:30 minutes.

“It means a lot. We want to be one of the greatest teams ever to put on the French jersey. Obviously we have a big goal this tournament, but it’s great to check this off the list.”

With the victory against China, the French have now won their four matches by a combined margin of 156 points.

One of the key reasons France’s attack has been so unbeatable this tournament is proficiency from outside the arc. Against Nigeria, France set a tournament record for three-pointers in a single game by netting 22. This time, France was again as effective as ever, converting 14 of its 37 three-point attempts. Johannès and Salaün hit three triples each.

“We are lucky because we are a group that have known each other for a couple of years now,” Salaün said of France’s team spirit. “We went through a lot of things, the Olympics, training camp(s), so we just know each other and we know what we want. We have a goal and we want to do everything to get to this goal.”

As for China, the only saving grace came from Han Xu, who led the team with 21 points and nine rebounds. Yang Shuyu contributed 19 points, but other than that, things were quite bleak for head coach Gong Luming’s side.

For starters, the French limited the impact of China’s 7-foot-3 Zhang Ziyu, who had the attention of two French players whenever she received the ball. The 19-year-old gem was held scoreless over her 7 minutes, 18 seconds of play in the first half, though she contributed in defense with three blocks before halftime.

Zhang ended up with seven points, eight rebounds, and seven turnovers. She was unable to stop Johannès from scoring successive 3-pointers in the third quarter, when she also got on the scoreboard.

France is now just one step away from reaching the World Cup final, where they will guarantee themselves at least a silver medal and officially surpass finishing third at the inaugural edition in 1953.

If France does reach the final, their likeliest opponent is still Team USA, and that would be a grudge match after what happened in the 2024 Paris Olympics final. Team USA won the closest of contests, 67-66, against the French, thanks to MVP A’ja Wilson’s heroics, who is not on the Team USA roster this time around.

Before that, France needs to get over the line against Germany, but that will be easier said than done, considering how the host nation performed in the quarterfinals.

Germany overcome Belgium scare to reach semifinals for the first time

Historically, Belgium has always had Germany’s number, and their overall head-to-head record reflects that, with Belgium leading 10-2. However, the host nation was not backing down, as the crowd in Berlin was electric when Germany beat the reigning FIBA Women’s EuroBasket champions 93-74. German center Luisa Geiselsoder explained how the team felt.

“[Was] this the best day of my career? That’s a really good question. Right now, yes. Because we’re in Berlin, we just beat Belgium. We meet them every summer. It’s hard to beat them. Right now, I’m telling you, yes. Right now, for sure.”

Not many would’ve guessed Germany would reach the quarterfinals after their 30-point opening-day loss against Spain. However, the host nation has made improvements since then, winning the rest of the games.

The crowd certainly played a role as well, with 10,537 fans watching as their country created history, including the legendary Dirk Nowitzki of the Dallas Mavericks.

“This is the night for German women’s basketball. Seeing all those fans, seeing the whole tournament with the fans… our whole Group Phase [games were] sold out. The game today was sold out. All of that is just so incredible, amazing for Germany.”

A total of six players from Germany scored in double digits, headlined by Leonie Fiebich’s 17 points and 10 rebounds, along with Nyara Sabally’s 16 points and 12 rebounds, who took the Player of the Game honors.

As for Belgium, only Emma Meesseman really gave the host-nation trouble with 29 points, her highest-ever total in the World Cup.

While Germany can deservedly party tonight, their biggest test awaits them on Saturday, as the host nation will go at it against France, the most dominant side in the World Cup till now.

Team USA is in the driving seat to reach the World Cup final

Truth be told, the only scare Team USA has had was in their second group stage game against Italy, where they recorded their lowest total in a major international tournament in 42 years.

However, head coach Kara Lawson’s side has since been an attacking machine, with dominant wins against the Czech Republic (105-64) and now Hungary in the quarterfinal (108-56).

Team USA will face Spain in the World Cup semifinal. While that seems like a big contest on paper, Spain has never beaten Team USA in the World Cup before, with the Stars and Stripes squad historically securing dominating wins against them.

Moreover, Team USA’s on-court chemistry has only increased since the opening game, with many headlines grabbed by the Caitlin Clark-Angel Reese connection.

With a solid veteran core led by Breanna Stewart, Napheesa Collier, and Jackie Young, and names like Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese, and Paige Bueckers coming off the bench, the squad is more motivated after their wake-up call against Italy.

“Let this be the last time that a team plays with more passion than us throughout the course of the game.”

“Let this be the last time that all 12 don’t show up to compete at a high level. And then let this be the last time that we lack a resilient mindset, because we’re so upset that we’re not scoring the way we’re normally scoring. That to me is what we’ve gotta grow and mature in moving forward.”

With two big wins in the bag, only Spain stands between the defending champions and their fifth consecutive FIBA World Cup final.